Tag: chemistry
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Small-Scale Ceramics Materials Engineered for Flexibility
Materials scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore created a new type of ceramics material with the ability to bend like metal, but retaining its strength. The team from the lab of MIT’s Christopher Schuh published its findings today in the journal Science (paid subscription required). The MIT-Singapore researchers developed…
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Near-Infrared Light Tests Paintings’ Ability to Travel
A collaboration of British, Spanish, and Slovenian chemistry researchers and fine art conservation specialists devised a technique adapted from the life sciences to test the ability of paintings to withstand the rigors of travel without damaging the works of art. The team led by Matija Strlic of the Centre for Sustainable Heritage at University College London…
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Safer, Cheaper Ultraviolet PCB Disposal Process Developed
A team of engineers and chemists at University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada devised a new process for cleaning soil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls or PCBs, cancer-causing chemicals banned in the U.S. since 1979, but with residues still in the environment. The new methods, say Calgary engineering professor Gopal Achari and chemistry professor Cooper Langford,…
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University of Houston Spins-Off Nanotech Coatings Company
A physics professor at University of Houston in Texas started a company to develop and manufacture protective coatings for industrial and consumer goods based on his research in nanotechnology. C-Voltaics, started by Houston physicist Seamus Curran, was awarded last week the Young Technology Award at the Commercialization of Micro- and Nanosystems conference in The Netherlands, according…
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University, Company Partner on Computer-Based Drug Discovery
The drug discovery company Serometrix in Pittsford, New York is deploying bioinformatics software developed by University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland for identifying protein structures that show subtle clues as potential targets for drugs. Financial terms of of the licensing agreement were not disclosed. The system is a result of a collaboration between Strathclyde chemistry…
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Fuel Cells for Refrigerated Trucks Under Development
A project combining the efforts of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, Washington with two fuel cell manufacturers is developing fuel cells to power the refrigeration units in refigerated trucks. The companies — Nuvera Fuel Cells in Billerica,, Massachusetts and Plug Power Inc. in Latham, New York — each received a $650,000 matching contract…
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Nanotech Window Coating Controls Building Light, Heat
Chemists and materials scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California created a window coating of nanocrystals that can dynamically control the sunlight passing through the window and thus improve a building’s energy efficiency. The team led by Berkeley Lab’s Delia Milliron published its findings yesterday in the journal Nature (paid subscription required). The Department…
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Efficient Synthesis Process Developed for Skin Cancer Drug
Chemists at Scripps Research Institute in San Diego and Leo Pharma in Denmark devised a more efficient process to synthesize ingenol, a complex compound found in treatments for actinic keratosis, a precancerous skin condition. The team led by Scripps’s chemistry professor Phil Baran published its findings in this week’s issue of Science Express, the advance…
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Nanowire Coating Boosts Bone Bonding to Implant Material
Materials scientists and biomedical engineers at Ohio State University in Columbus designed a coating of nanowires that can help improve the bonding between human bone and implant materials. The team led by Ohio State materials scientist Sheikh Akbar published its results in this month’s issue of the journal Ceramics International (paid subscription required). The process…
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Engineers Double Efficiency of Solar Film Cells
Engineers and materials scientists at University of California in Los Angeles improved the design of solar cells built in a thin semi-transparent film that nearly doubles their ability to generate power. A team from the lab of engineering professor Yang Yang described its findings online in Friday’s issue of the journal Energy and Environmental Science…